On the security front, Nesson distinguishes three different levels of concerns.
At the personal level, the center is investigating ways to protect individual privacy in network environments.
To address corporate interests, Berkman researchers are focusing on the demands of adjusting to an increasingly open business climate on the Web, especially for companies accustomed to operating under a veil of secrecy.
In the realm of national security, the center is planning initiatives to limit America's exposure to Internet terrorists.
Nesson explains that as the "leader in technology, we've built our own economy more on technology than anyone else, so to the extent that the Internet is vulnerable, we are very vulnerable."
Finally, the open commerce focus of the center relates to the development of trade on the Web.
"We're furthest behind on that," Nesson admits, but he offers the idea of a joint program between the Berkman Center and Jamaica as an example of how the Net might help boost the economies of developing nations.